Angels' Scioscia loses his first replay challenge

It didn’t take long for the Angels to get to try out the new replay system.

Playing their first designated “challenge game,” the Angels challenged a call in the second inning of Monday’s 3-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Angels lost the challenge, but they learned a few things about the system.

First, it took too long. It took 2 minutes 31 seconds from the time umpires went to the headset to communicate with the replay officials for them to render their decision.

“I’m sure they’re going to tighten that up at some point,” Manager Mike Scioscia said.

Also, the system doesn’t work that well with the limited cameras that cover games in spring training. The Angels challenged a call when Luis Jimenez was caught stealing second. It appeared to the Angels that second baseman Aaron Hill missed the tag, but the play was blocked on one of the two available angles and inconclusive on the other.

“We’re going to have about 15 angles (in the regular season) to get a better read on it,” Scioscia said.

As for the mechanics from the Angels side, they had director of baseball information Nick Francona watching the game on TV in the clubhouse. While Scioscia was arguing the play with umpire Bill Miller, Francona reviewed the play and radioed down to bench coach Dino Ebel to let him know it was challengeable. Ebel then signaled to Scioscia, who told the umpires he wanted to use his challenge.

Francona said during the season the clubs will have people in dedicated video rooms with access to all angles to make determinations on whether a play should be challenged.

For now, it’s pretty primitive.

“The general consensus is that spring training is for the on-field choreography of what they’re trying to get down, and the actual technology of the system of giving the replay itself will come,” he said.

Clubs get one challenge for the first six innings, and a second if they win the first. After the sixth inning, umpires can initiate a review on their own, but a team that still has its challenge can also use it then.

“I don’t think it’s going to take much time for the logistics to smooth out,” Scioscia said. “As far as the strategy, that might take time.”

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